Amex To Launch Plenti Loyalty Program To Gain Customer Confidence

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Mar 23, 2015

Now pay your AT&T (T, Financial) or Exxon Mobil (XOM, Financial) bill, earn points and use them to shop at Rite Aid (RAD, Financial) or Macy’s (M, Financial). This is happening under the new loyalty program between AmEx (AXP, Financial) and seven other companies including Macy’s Inc., AT&T, Exxon Mobil Corp., Rite Aid, Hulu, Nationwide (NFS, Financial) and Direct Energy. The program is called "Plenti" and requires no fees to join for customers. The program will start this spring. Let’s find out what this Plenti strategy undertaken by these reputed companies is all about and how AmEx card could make life easier under this loyalty program.

About a ‘Plenti’ of benefits

Plenti is a rewards program designed by American Express Bank spun around earning points from one company and redeeming it while shopping at the other. This is a program between AmEx and 7 other popular companies, thus increasing the options for customers to buy from a variety of brands. As per a recent research, about 72% of Americans would like to join a rewards program that allows them to shop at various stores instead of limiting to just one or two. AmEx and the partners seems to have taken this research data seriously and have come up with the loyalty program called ‘Plenti’. This program will give its customers reward points, special offers and discounts as well. What’s more, it’s free of cost too! There is also liberty to pay by any means –Â prepaid, debit, charge, credit card or even cash.

As per the program, a consumer will earn $10 in savings for every 1,000 points earned. Plenti members will have the advantage of earning points even faster by activating a series of special promotional offers by the participating companies. They can also avail of points through online offer centers or online marketplaces. AmEx will be charging a set fee from the participating companies under this loyalty program.

Role of U.S. loyalty in Plenti

AmEx is elated at the launch of Plenti considering it to be a strong pull point for adding more customers and generating higher revenues. The company thinks it to be the perfect timing for launching a multi-brand loyalty program keeping in mind the implosion in online marketing and U.S. consumers’ hunt for more offers, more discounts and better reward programs.

American Express started running Membership Rewards program and acquired loyalty partner in 2011, whose subsidiary Payback is managing loyalty programs for AmEx in Germany, Poland, Italy, India and Mexico. It has more than 60 million active customers across these countries. This is also a multi-brand loyalty program that ensures value to customers and also generates additional revenues for the participating companies.

U.S. loyalty is another division of AmEx which will now undertake the proceedings of Plenti. It will be responsible for issuing rewards and will also take care of the centralised marketing activities of the program in collaboration with the founding companies. The secure management of user’s data collected through Plenti is also a responsibility of U.S.loyalty which needs to ensure that no data breach incident comes up in the near future.

AmEx also has a tie-in with Delta Airlines Inc.(DAL, Financial), Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide (HOT, Financial) and Cathay Pacific Airways Ltd. (CPCAF, Financial)(CPCAY, Financial) to issue co-branded cards. While expansion plans of AmEx through marketing and loyalty programs take shape, its competitors Visa (V, Financial) and MasterCard (MA, Financial) are also initiating measures to quickly catch up in this game.

Conclusion

Having a well-known experience in running loyalty programs and reward points system, American Express has caught just the right nerve of the consumer and is hence offering them a multi-brand lucrative reward program. Coined as Plenti, the free program is getting launched in May this year and will make customers eligible to shop and earn points at the same time from a wide array of companies operating in different industries ranging from oil station to salon services to clothing. Though the company hasn’t disclosed the financial details of the deal yet, it is expected to be released in the coming months.